a foot in the door
Toronto’s hot market is a challenge for young couples, one a condo could solve.
Asafe location, room to grow, a good investment and located near the city. Doesn’t seem like a lot for a young professional couple to ask of the Toronto real estate and rental market. But as so many 20- and 30-somethings know, it is.
“We typically get outbid even after offering anywhere from $30,000 to $60,000 over asking,” says Rachel Doerksen, a public relations professional who lives in the city. “Recently we went after a house that had 17 registered offers … We knew we wouldn’t get it, but still tried. We made the top five bids, that’s something right?”
She and her husband, Jay, have been looking to make the leap from renters to property owners for several years. They recently had their first child and feel the pressure growing on their space. (“It already feels more cramped with a little baby who isn’t even crawling yet,” she says.)
The problem is they can’t afford to buy — they keep getting outbid — yet can’t, as they recently learned, afford to move to a larger rental unit either.
“We’ve been in our Little Italy apartment for six years now, luckily with no price increase,” says Ms. Doerksen. “We’re seeing basement apart- ments that haven’t been updated in 30 years go for almost the same as what we’re paying now … In order for us to get a better rental, we would have to pull back our future savings to cover the increase, making home ownership even more impossible.”
They’re stuck in something I like to call Toronto’s rather discouraging housing/rental market Catch-22. But there may be hope.
In the midst of this “too expensive to buy/too expensive to rent” debate, several condominium developments are popping up that, in a sense, remove overpaying for a property from the equation. One such complex is Garrison Point.
In Liberty Village, Garrison will be a small community of five towers off Strachan Avenue and Ordnance Street; townhouses will also be available. Designed by award-winning architects Hariri Pontarini, the complex will offer incredible amenities to its residents as well as easy access to some of Toronto’s favourite spots (BMO Field, the Ossington scene, etc.).
And perhaps most important for people looking to make the leap into buying, Garrison’s suites will be uniquely affordable.
According to real estate market research firm Urbanation, the average cost to rent a one-bedroom condo in the third quarter of 2013 was $1,875 (that’s up about 4.2% from the same period last year). In some cases, you could end up paying upwards of $2,000 to rent a 650 square foot space — especially if you’re looking in prime locations like Liberty Village.
Over at Garrison Point, the average suite size will be 650 square feet and sell for $350,000. After factoring in a 20% down payment, property taxes and maintenance fees, the cost to carry the space each month will be $1,705.
In a sense, you could save money by buying.
“What we offer is affordability,” says Sam Crignano, president of Cityzen Development Group, one of the developers behind Garrison Point. He, like many people, believes the low interest rates we’ve been seeing won’t last much longer, that if you have a down payment, it’s a good time to buy. That’s especially true when you consider all the added benefits you get with buying a condo.
There’s added space thanks to common areas. “You have to look beyond the square footage of a unit,” Mr. Crignano says. “There are meeting rooms, there are theatres, there is a gym, we’ve got an outdoor swimming pool and a number of areas that are designated for children [they will be programmed for kids of various ages]. You’ll have a lot of spaces that are an extension of the home.”
And there’s the luxury of being located in a prime downtown neighbourhood that’s safe. “I always say whether you’re renting or buying, you’re going to shop the neighbourhood first,” Mr. Crignano says.
“Liberty Village appeals to the full spectrum of the demographic curve, young people, young singles, young families and empty nesters all because of the green space, the walkability, the services, the fact you can live/work/learn/play in your neighbourhood.”
And then there are the ways a complex like Garrison Point will benefit the Liberty Village/ King West community. As part of the development plan, four acres of the property’s seven- acre land will be conveyed to the city for a public park. Pedestrian bridges will also link the towers to the main streets around them, giving residents the ability to manoeuvre around the GO Train tracks with ease.
“At the end of the day it’s all about lifestyle and affordability,” Mr. Crignano says. “I truly believe this is a buyer’s market and there’s great availability, great design projects. We’re building better buildings — better designed and better built.” That’s why his company has invested so heavily in Garrison.
Which is something that could benefit young families like the Doerksens. “Looking further down the road, purchasing a home is a great investment and one that is important to us,” Ms. Doerksen says. “By continuing to rent, we aren’t banking our money how we would like to be. We would rather be building equity than signing a rent check to someone else each month.”